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ONE OF THE GREATEST ALBUMS

Peter Crisman | Gainesville, Florida | 11/30/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Seriously, I am a devoted fan of Paul Desmond, and this is my favorite album, not just out of Desmond albums, but all albums. I own a fairly large jazz collection, mostly CDs, lots of Miles Davis and cool jazz of course, yet I listen to my Skylark record more than any other album I own. Recorded in late '73; Desmond plays beautifully and swinging even just three short years before his own death of lung cancer. Guitarist Gabor Szabo is featured on this album, and for good reason. Jack DeJohnette plays drum set. The first song, Take Ten, a variation of the Take Five theme Desmond wrote, is amazing. I find myself humming it in my head a great deal and often switch to its melody in the middle of humming Take Five. Romance de Amor is a well-organized and beautiful piece with an interesting sound. Was a Sunny Day is a wonderful cut with a great motivated solo by Desmond. It's hard to sit still while listening to it (or any part of this album). Music for a While is a fine, beautiful song with some strings. The melody is an adaptation of the classical Dido's Lament. Finally, Skylark, the last and most definitely the most awesome. Desmonds playing on this song can only be described as heavenly. One melodic line in Skylark has kept me awake late into the night before, almost too gorgeous to seem real. This is truly one of the greatest albums in jazz recorded by one of the greatest artists of all time, Paul Desmond. I was just looking at the reviews for Kind of Blue...take my word for it, buy this album, if Kind of Blue gets 5 stars then Skylark gets at least 7."

Sounds that grow on you quickly...

William E. Adams | Midland, Texas USA | 08/02/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I made the mistake of reading the booklet before playing this CD. The notes, written by someone named John Snyder in 1987, seem to pan the disc more than they explain it. Refreshingly honest, but odd. The music was created originally in 1973, and the album did not sell well. I liked 50 percent of this upon first hearing, 70 percent after three listens, and now I enjoy 90 percent. It's one of those releases with the best tunes coming last. "Skylark" seems to me to be the most successful selection, yet to the Snyder guy, it seemed the least successful. This album is not as wonderful as "Paul Desmond Quartet Live" but I'd rate it a bit ahead of Desmond's "Easy Living" CD, which comes close to "easy listening" yet is still nice to hear. "Skylark", according to Mr. Snyder, brought Desmond into an awkward, uneasy alliance with his fellow players Gabor Szabo on guitar, Bob James on piano, and Jack DeJohnette on drums. I suppose he's right, but if you do NOT read the booklet first, you'll probably think this is a worthy disc. Paul Desmond is one of the better sax men to have come along, quite different from Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley, but great in his own sweet way. For those newcomers to Desmond, I can't praise the "Live" album on the A&M label enough. Outside of his work with Dave Brubeck on "Time Out" and "Time Further Out", that's the first one to get."

Pleasant, Yet Young

Scott Broekemeier | Toledo, OH USA | 02/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I am 46-I recieved this album when I was in my teens. Recently purchased the cd, vinyl is in storage. A lovely, floating mix of music. I loved it back then. You can hear, if you listen carefully to Desmond taking breaths through his solos. Guitar solos are top notch----SKYLARK says, "Put me on and play me, kick back and eat breakfast---grab the newspaper and be cool". This is a 24-7 piece of bliss.,"

Paul Desmond, Skylark

David F. Litell | Woodland Park, CO USA | 05/30/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I purchased this based on a "Skylark" review here on Amazon. These reviews are superb and let us expand our collections and education. The "perfect" Szabo work on "Skylark" is a "fine fit" with the wonderful, "perfect" Desmond work. It all fits and is a magical door into our enjoyment when life was simpler and more fun in some ways. What a fine work. This one is certainly great... well-named!! like Gabor said, he could only play music he felt...an Honest man that way...I got to see it! Rather see/hear/do it. So, those of like Mind got together and made an actually class act work. WOW."